Reviews of wines, producers, restaurants and books
The year is soon coming to its end (we wrote at the end of December) and it will soon be time to plan what drink to finish it and celebrate the new year with. Or
Château de Chantegrive is one of the few really big chateaux in AC Graves (the other big ones are in Pessac-Leognan), with 90 hectares of vines. This is also the star of the Graves appellation
Britt’s Wine of the Month: Domaine Pierre Chauvin 2008, Cuvée La Fontaine des Bois, AOP Anjou, Loire Valley In the heart of sweet wine appellation Coteaux du Layon in the region of Anjou (Loire), we
Åsa’s wine of the month comes from Querciabella, a winery in Tuscany that has been organic since 1988 and biodynamic since 2000. The vineyards are in a superb location in the Chinati Classico region at
They have the tagline “pizzaioli emigranti” and they probably have a large emigrated family: It is actually a chain of restaurants that exists in more than 20 cities. We are not fans of chain restaurants
Trattoria ai Piloti is a fish restaurant, which is not easy to find in Verona. It is on the corner of the San Zeno square (a charming square with an impressive church 10 minutes walk
Enoteca Zero 7 is a small wine bar, café and wine shop. Will find it around the corner on a side street from Corso Porta Nuova just outside the Portoni della Bra. The perfect place
The restaurant Osteria le Vecete is an old-style classic Italian taverna. A touch rustic, a touch gastronomy, a touch friendly. A good mix. The restaurant is bang in the centre of Verona, between Piazza delle
It is very crowded, very busy. It is very likely that they will say “we’ll have a table for you in 20 minutes” and you will have (!) to go and have an aperitif somewhere.
La Pigna is a charming traditional style Italian restaurant, just a touch more towards elegant rather than rustic. It is on a street also called La Pigna (the pine cone) in the historic city centre
This month we propose to you a Verona restaurant special. Verona is a popular tourist destination, not least since it is the centre for the wine regions in Veneto: Valpolicella, Soave, Bardolino, Gambellara, and the
This is a small and beautiful estate, situated very close to the pretty town of Saint Emilion. The wines here, made with merlot as the main grape variety, are classic Bordeaux wines that age beautifully
We have a big hole in our wine cellar. Or so it seems. We need to refill the spaces on the shelves so that we have something to drink for dinner. We have always had
Le Conte des Floris is a small, high quality estate in Languedoc, in the village of Caux, close to Pezenas. Daniel Le Conte des Floris is a relative newcomer to the business, he started his
I could not help but to nominate an “olive of the month” after having tasted the green olive “Lucques” by the cooperative L’Oulibo in Bize-Minervois. Lucques has a characteristic, elongated shape and should preferably be
Château St Jacques d’Albas in Laure-Minervois is run by Englishman Graham Nutter and his French wife Beatrice. They came here a few years ago, “when everything was in ruins” and now they have a beautifully
Les Violettes 2011 Domaine Montirius Vin de Pays de Vaucluse Les Violettes is a new wine from this excellent and biodynamic producer in the southern Rhone Valley. The wine is 100% syrah and has the
Petit Chablis 2010 Domaine Sainte Claire Jean-Marc Brocard Very pleasant Chablis with crispy freshness and aromas of citrus. Good length and more body than you would expect. Petit Chablis may be the lowest of the
We made a very pleasant discovery in the 20th arrondissement in Paris the other day. It is a wine shop/wine bar called Au Nouveau Nez (which is a play with words, the name means “
In the small village of Mareuil-sur-Aÿ a few kilometres east of Epernay, we find Champagne Philipponnat in a handsome house with a magnificent gate. Philipponnat is a small, high-quality champagne house. It owns 17 hectares
They have good pizzas. That’s the most important thing to say about Le Verso. The restaurant is nothing special, quite plain. But pizzas are good. They do have a terrasse (outside seating), albeit on a
QOC is a small modern style restaurant in the centre of Agrigento, in the Valley of the Greek Temples, just a few steps away from where you have a view of the temples. On the
There are plenty of restaurants around the old harbour in Marseilles that serve bouillabaisse. This is not one of them. (Or maybe they do have it after all…) Paul & Kopa is basically a pizzeria,
The Osteria dell’Arco restaurant is actually on the main square in Alba, the Piazza Savona, but it is hidden at the end of a court yard. You can try a range of Piemontese specialities: the
The Harbour House Restaurant in Kalk Bay has a fabulous location in the harbour with its feet in the water. One is glad that the windows are closed otherwise one would be completely soaked. Worth
On the wine tour we recently did in Veneto in northern Italy we visited several different wine regions around Verona. We tasted red wines in Valpolicella, with amarone prominently featured, whites in Soave and in
In the March Brief we said that Beaujolais needs promoting. And we would like to do our part. Because when a Beaujolais wine is of good quality it is really a very pleasant wine. One
Le Cinq-Mars is a typical, friendly restaurant du quartier where people working in the offices all around come and have lunch and local residents have dinner. The obligatory rickety wooden chairs, wooden table, nice ISO
You may think that you have taken a wrong turn or lost your way before you arrive. The restaurant, and winery, is at the end of a long winding road on a hilltop. This is
We taste wines back to 1970 from one of the most famous Provence estates A vineyard in Provence that also traces its roots to Bordeaux recently organised a tasting with wines back to 1970: Chateau
The year is soon coming to its end (we wrote at the end of December) and it will soon be time to plan what drink
Château de Chantegrive is one of the few really big chateaux in AC Graves (the other big ones are in Pessac-Leognan), with 90 hectares of
Britt’s Wine of the Month: Domaine Pierre Chauvin 2008, Cuvée La Fontaine des Bois, AOP Anjou, Loire Valley In the heart of sweet wine appellation
Åsa’s wine of the month comes from Querciabella, a winery in Tuscany that has been organic since 1988 and biodynamic since 2000. The vineyards are
They have the tagline “pizzaioli emigranti” and they probably have a large emigrated family: It is actually a chain of restaurants that exists in more
Trattoria ai Piloti is a fish restaurant, which is not easy to find in Verona. It is on the corner of the San Zeno square
Enoteca Zero 7 is a small wine bar, café and wine shop. Will find it around the corner on a side street from Corso Porta
The restaurant Osteria le Vecete is an old-style classic Italian taverna. A touch rustic, a touch gastronomy, a touch friendly. A good mix. The restaurant
It is very crowded, very busy. It is very likely that they will say “we’ll have a table for you in 20 minutes” and you
La Pigna is a charming traditional style Italian restaurant, just a touch more towards elegant rather than rustic. It is on a street also called
This month we propose to you a Verona restaurant special. Verona is a popular tourist destination, not least since it is the centre for the
This is a small and beautiful estate, situated very close to the pretty town of Saint Emilion. The wines here, made with merlot as the
We have a big hole in our wine cellar. Or so it seems. We need to refill the spaces on the shelves so that we
Le Conte des Floris is a small, high quality estate in Languedoc, in the village of Caux, close to Pezenas. Daniel Le Conte des Floris
I could not help but to nominate an “olive of the month” after having tasted the green olive “Lucques” by the cooperative L’Oulibo in Bize-Minervois.
Château St Jacques d’Albas in Laure-Minervois is run by Englishman Graham Nutter and his French wife Beatrice. They came here a few years ago, “when
Les Violettes 2011 Domaine Montirius Vin de Pays de Vaucluse Les Violettes is a new wine from this excellent and biodynamic producer in the southern
Petit Chablis 2010 Domaine Sainte Claire Jean-Marc Brocard Very pleasant Chablis with crispy freshness and aromas of citrus. Good length and more body than you
We made a very pleasant discovery in the 20th arrondissement in Paris the other day. It is a wine shop/wine bar called Au Nouveau Nez
In the small village of Mareuil-sur-Aÿ a few kilometres east of Epernay, we find Champagne Philipponnat in a handsome house with a magnificent gate. Philipponnat
They have good pizzas. That’s the most important thing to say about Le Verso. The restaurant is nothing special, quite plain. But pizzas are good.
QOC is a small modern style restaurant in the centre of Agrigento, in the Valley of the Greek Temples, just a few steps away from
There are plenty of restaurants around the old harbour in Marseilles that serve bouillabaisse. This is not one of them. (Or maybe they do have
The Osteria dell’Arco restaurant is actually on the main square in Alba, the Piazza Savona, but it is hidden at the end of a court
The Harbour House Restaurant in Kalk Bay has a fabulous location in the harbour with its feet in the water. One is glad that the
On the wine tour we recently did in Veneto in northern Italy we visited several different wine regions around Verona. We tasted red wines in
In the March Brief we said that Beaujolais needs promoting. And we would like to do our part. Because when a Beaujolais wine is of
Le Cinq-Mars is a typical, friendly restaurant du quartier where people working in the offices all around come and have lunch and local residents have
You may think that you have taken a wrong turn or lost your way before you arrive. The restaurant, and winery, is at the end
We taste wines back to 1970 from one of the most famous Provence estates A vineyard in Provence that also traces its roots to Bordeaux
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